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New Madonna Book Features New Details About Sean Penn’s Romance, Ken Regan Photos, Nile Rodgers Interviews, and More

New Madonna Book Features New Details About Sean Penn’s Romance, Ken Regan Photos, Nile Rodgers Interviews, and More

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission. Madonna’s 1985 rise is getting a new spotlight. Insight Editions will launch “Madonna: Into the Groove: An Intimate Portrait of the Queen of Pop,” a new photo book created around the work of photographer

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission.

Madonna’s 1985 rise is getting a new spotlight.

Insight Editions will launch “Madonna: Into the Groove: An Intimate Portrait of the Queen of Pop,” a new photo book created around the work of photographer Ken Regan, with text by Tomás Mier. The book focuses on a pivotal year in Madonna’s career, when “Like a Virgin,” “Material Girl,” “Desperately Looking Susan,” the Virgin tour and Live Aid helped turn her from a rising pop star into a global phenomenon.

Madonna's new book reveals details about her relationship with Sean Penn

NEW LAUNCH

Madonna: In the rhythm

The book includes intimate, archival images from Regan’s sessions with Madonna in 1985, including photo shoots at Le Mondrian in Los Angeles, where she posed in a hotel room, a ballroom, and a gym. The interiors show Madonna in various mid-’80s looks: lace tights, leotards, crucifixes, stacked bracelets, “healthy swimmer” looks, and the punk-Catholic iconography that became central to her early image.

Structured into chapters including “A Material Girl,” “Le Mondrian,” “The Virgin Tour,” “Live Aid” and “Aftermath,” the book combines glossy studio-style photography with behind-the-scenes stories from collaborators including Nile Rodgers, Maripol and members of Regan’s circle. It also places Madonna’s rise in the broader cultural context of 1985, from the growing power of MTV to the backlash against sexually provocative pop music.

One of the most striking sections of the book focuses on Live Aid, where Regan served as the official photographer for half of the benefit concert in Philadelphia. A screenshot of the book, shared exclusively with Varietydetails how Regan tried to capture as many big stars as possible backstage and on stage, from Bob Dylan and Tina Turner to Keith Richards, Mick Jagger and Madonna.

According to the excerpt, Regan had originally planned a controlled photography installation near the stage entrance, complete with lights and a generator. But once the concert began, the plan fell apart: the generator failed, the backstage area became chaotic, and Regan had to improvise with multiple cameras and a flash. He eventually captured a rare group photograph featuring several of the biggest names of the day, including Madonna and Dylan, in just a handful of frames.

The excerpt also recounts a tense, never-before-told moment involving Sean Penn, who had recently reconnected with Madonna and was set to marry her the following month. Regan’s assistant, Craig Blankenhorn, remembers Penn approaching him and asking why Regan had sold photos of Madonna to Penthouse. Blankenhorn says Regan explained that she didn’t know the backstory of how the photos would be released and that she didn’t intend to embarrass Madonna. The conversation escalated, and Blankenhorn recalled that Penn spit on his shoes before the moment was over without going any further.

The story captures the volatile beginnings of one of the most notable celebrity relationships of the decade. Two days after Live Aid, Sire released “Into the Groove” as a single in the United Kingdom, where it reached number one. Weeks later, Madonna married Penn in Malibu, in a very covered wedding attended by stars such as Cher, Tom Cruise, Carrie Fisher, Keith Haring, Diane Keaton, Rob Lowe, Martin Sheen, Christopher Walken and Andy Warhol.

The book follows the pop star’s 15th album, “Confessions: II,” which Variety Music writer Steven Horowitz calls it “their best album in decades.”

Pre-order “Madonna: Into the Groove” online here.

Check back often for more exciting news!

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